I am annoyed by the magnet test for ammunition

I am annoyed how at many indoor ranges and shooting events, they want to magnet test your ammunition, on the basis that if it is magnetic, it must contain a steel penetrator core.

That's a load of bull and everyone should know it. The stuff that is usually magnetic would be Wolf ammunition, or old Eastern Block surplus stuff, and that is usually because of a bimetal jacket and steel casing, not because there is a penetrator core. Why would Wolf, Norinco, and Bulgarian surplus be so cheap and so readily available on the market if it were "armor piercing"?

I think it's some weird mad-on people have for Wolf. I figure people who run indoor ranges are just mad because they can't reload your Wolf casings, thus making extra profit in selling reloads on top of your range use fee, and so they say nobody can fire Wolf, or anything else magnetic, on the range.

you are exactly right, its because they cant reload it, and don't want to sift through it. they feel part of your range fee is the brass you leave. i usually smuggle it in and shoot it anyways, **** them.

I've never seen or heard of any of that. Is it like that at every range in your area? Are you close enough to the Front Sight folks to go there? I'm pretty sure they wouldn't have an such BS.

I'll have to check out the Front Sight people. The practice of magnet-checking ammunition happens at an indoor range called American Shooters, which unfortunately is the most convieniently located indoor range for me. (I have a membership at a great outdoor range, but it can get windy in the desert so sometimes I specifically want to shoot in controlled indoor conditions.)

I've read on the internet that at some competitions they magnet check all the ammo, though. I figure I'll have to get in touch with locals organizing events ahead of time to ask them about whether or not they allow magnetic rounds at their events.

The range doesn't REQUIRE you to leave your brass does it? I'd take it all with me out of spite.

When I was at the range yesterday, three casings were in easy reach of where I was standing when I finished shooting (in other words, I wouldn't have had to crawl on the floor to get them). I knew about the range's used brass reselling--and had read this thread--but after thinking about pocketing at least one of them I picked up those casings and put them in the...let's say small metal pocket...mounted to the right wall of the stall. I have no idea what that the actual purpose of that pocket is.

Maybe I subconsciously thought of putting that brass there as tipping, because the instructor that spent a few minutes teaching me the operation of a 1911 (free of charge) was exceedingly friendly and helpful. I was already feeling tired and a little sick when I arrived, and that guy carried down my basket of rented/purchased range gear, set up a lane for me well away from the one shooter who was already there, stayed with me through my first magazine (which didn't go quickly), got me a speedloader when I had difficulty loading the magazine again, got me a chair when he got back from that, and finally brought me a small walkie-talkie so I could radio if I needed anything else rather than going up the stairs. It probably helped that I referred to myself as a "spastic monkey" almost immediately after arriving at the counter and that he (and the other staff) had seen my gimp walk for at least six feet before I got to the counter from the door.

Sorry to derail with an anecdote, my point is simply that sometimes I don't mind a company having a little extra at my expense.

EDIT: ****, I forgot to mention that this range also bans Wolf ammo. It was almost three years ago when the manager first told me about it; I seem to recall him mentioning the word "steel" in relation to Wolf. For that matter, the range doesn't allow you to use your own ammo anyway, unless it's a remainder from what you bought at the range on a previous visit (and their tape seal on the box isn't broken).

Last edited by Robstafarian; 5/12/2009 8:27am at .
Reason: Typo in first edit

Alot of guys have a huge hard on against wolf ammo. This is not just on ranges either, I have had numerous people in gun stores tell me how bad wolf is. So far it has always been people who who's cheapest ammo was twice the price of the wolf ammo I could get down the street.